1. The Circle of Faith : Awareness Read together pages 76-87 in LIVING JUSTICE AND PEACE

2. Copy the Circle of Faith-in-Action and descriptors on bottom of page 78 into your notes.

3. Before people get to know others, it is easy to have prior judgments or expectations set. Many of us will have an initially negative image of homelessness or poverty even though we don’t actually know people who are in these situations.

4. Why is this? “Why” is an important question because preconceived ideas about others often cloud our understanding of situations. People (such as the students from our textbook) who have a first hand experience with issues and people affected by homelessness and poverty become more aware of the full situation. This is why justice must begin with awareness.

5. Awareness: seeing, hearing, and knowing the world in a spirit of friendship, as God does. Each of us perceives and interprets things in our own way – therefore we each have our own unique awareness of the world. Part of awareness is allowing ourselves to be open to new ways of seeing. This doesn’t mean changing our eyesight, but rather allowing some of the basic beliefs we hold about the world to be challenged. These basic beliefs are called our worldview.

6. Two things form our worldview: Experience What we have done and seen in the world Culture The collective values and beliefs shared by a specific group of people Group can be ethnically or nationally defined Group can be a religious group, a school, or a sports team – essentially any group that distinguishes itself from others can have its own culture Peer pressure is often a significant force in cultural groups Media can also influence culture The more we experience or the longer we live within a culture, the more our worldview is influenced

7. Blind Spots: Experience and culture influences our worldview. We must be aware that our worldviews also have limitations or ‘blind spots’. Becoming aware helps us to distinguish our personal blind spots. Often these blind spots allow injustice to flourish – for example, slavery: For many years slavery was an acceptable part of many peoples’ worldview. Eventually more and more slave owners increased their awareness and allowed their worldviews to be challenged. This awareness helped lead to an entire civil rights movement.

8. Seeing the world as Jesus does Jesus challenges us to see the world from a love- centered perspective – not a selfish perspective. This requires: Respect – meaning to look beyond outer appearances and first impressions to see the goodness that is the foundation of all God’s creation Abundant life – challenges us to question what our culture often considers to be ‘normal’ and asking ‘Is life being lived abundantly as God intended?’ Compassion – not always a comfortable emotion because it means sharing in other peoples’ joy and pain True compassion leads us to question the underlying causes of unjust situations

9. Answer the following questions in your Journal: Circle of Faith 1.Think about your “worldview”. Give two “cultures” that have shaped your worldview. 2. Name one thing in society today that may be a “blind spot”. 3. How do you personally see the world from a “love-centered perspective” in each of these ways: a. Respect – b. Abundant life – c. Compassion –